as in bursts
a sudden intense expression of strong feeling
the audience responded to the comedian's joke with gales of laughter
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of gales
Strong winds were also a concern in areas where residents are accustomed to heavy rain, but not necessarily cyclone-strength gales.
—
Hilary Whiteman, CNN, 4 Mar. 2025
The front will have strong north to northeast winds behind it and prompt development of gales offshore of Tampico, Mexico through early Friday morning creating peak seas with 12- to 14-foot waves.
—Richard Tribou, Orlando Sentinel, 13 Feb. 2025
The storm, named Eowyn, brought gales to Ireland throughout Friday morning and afternoon, according to the Irish Meteorological Service.
—Claire Moses, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2025
The storm, which is named Eowyn, brought damaging gales throughout Friday, and 625,000 homes and businesses in Ireland were without power by the evening, the power supplier ESB said in a statement.
—Nazaneen Ghaffar, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2025
Winter gales and ice were a constant threat.
—Marianne Mather, Chicago Tribune, 19 Dec. 2024
Nuclear power plants have increasingly been seen as a carbon pollution-free source of electricity that can fill in for solar and wind farms when the sun sets and gales weaken.
—Justine Calma, The Verge, 4 Dec. 2024
Slowly the mystical land enters her inner world and – one day at a time – Rona finds hope and strength in herself among the heavy gales and the bracingly cold sea.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 4 Oct. 2024
Hilary Whiteman, CNN, 4 Mar. 2025
The front will have strong north to northeast winds behind it and prompt development of gales offshore of Tampico, Mexico through early Friday morning creating peak seas with 12- to 14-foot waves.
—Richard Tribou, Orlando Sentinel, 13 Feb. 2025
The storm, named Eowyn, brought gales to Ireland throughout Friday morning and afternoon, according to the Irish Meteorological Service.
—Claire Moses, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2025
The storm, which is named Eowyn, brought damaging gales throughout Friday, and 625,000 homes and businesses in Ireland were without power by the evening, the power supplier ESB said in a statement.
—Nazaneen Ghaffar, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2025
Winter gales and ice were a constant threat.
—Marianne Mather, Chicago Tribune, 19 Dec. 2024
Nuclear power plants have increasingly been seen as a carbon pollution-free source of electricity that can fill in for solar and wind farms when the sun sets and gales weaken.
—Justine Calma, The Verge, 4 Dec. 2024
Slowly the mystical land enters her inner world and – one day at a time – Rona finds hope and strength in herself among the heavy gales and the bracingly cold sea.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 4 Oct. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gales
Noun
-
The earthquake’s energy release was comparable to that of several hundred nuclear weapon explosions.—
Robin George Andrews,
Scientific American,
28 Mar. 2025
-
Several tanks containing various fuels caused secondary explosions in the building.—
Noelle Alviz-Gransee,
Kansas City Star,
27 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
Expect winds to be west 12 to 20 mph with gusts of 30 to 45 mph and humidity 15 to 20 percent.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
22 Mar. 2025
-
Winds are expected to be from the west at 10 to 20 mph with gusts as high as 30 to 35 mph and relative humidity as low as 15 to 20 percent.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
22 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
But players grew tired of that explosive coaching style, finding his outbursts a stale method of getting through to them, according to multiple sources familiar with their thinking.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
11 Apr. 2025
-
Three games over that stretch featured double-digit outbursts, as well as two nine-run showings.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
8 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Past eruptions of Spurr have caused significant disruption to air travel in nearby Anchorage, sometimes shutting flights down for days.—
Mary Walrath-Holdridge,
USA TODAY,
14 Mar. 2025
-
The 1992 eruptions prompted the temporary closures of airports in Anchorage and other communities.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
13 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gales.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gales. Accessed 23 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share